E-update: July 31, 2007
Welcome to the Fire Corps E-Update. Fire Corps is a locally-driven Citizen Corps program that allows community members to offer their time and talents to their local fire and EMS departments in non-operational roles. Fire Corps serves as a gateway to information for and about fire and EMS department programs and meets a citizen's desire to serve as well as a department's need for support.
In this issue:
- Fire Corps Welcomes New Program Director
- Fire Corps is a Certifying Organization for President’s Volunteer Service Award
- Fire Corps National Preparedness Month Update - Americans with Disabilities
- Fire Corps Members Take First Place at National Leadership Conference
- Share Information on the Fire Corps Connection Listserv
- Department Profile: Fire Corps of Utah
- Calendar of Events
Fire Corps Welcomes New Program Director
Fire Corps is pleased to announce that Melissa Speed has joined the Fire Corps staff as the new Fire Corps Director. Melissa comes to Fire Corps with experience in program management as well as in local and international government. Native to Maryland and the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, Melissa earned a Bachelor of Arts in Government and African Studies from Connecticut College and a Masters of Science at the University of London, School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), London, England.
"We are thrilled to have Melissa join the Fire Corps team," said Sarah Lee, the former Fire Corps director who has now moved to the position of Deputy Director of the NVFC. "Melissa will be a great asset to the program, and I look forward to working with her as Fire Corps continues to grow."
In addition to overseeing Fire Corps on the national level, Melissa’s responsibilities include providing vision and direction for the program, implementing program activities, and serving as the program spokesperson. Melissa can be contacted at 1-888-FC-INFO1 or mspeed@firecorps.org.
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Fire Corps is a Certifying Organization for President’s Volunteer Service Award
Did you know that Fire Corps is a certifying organization for the President’s Volunteer Service Award? The President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation created the President’s Volunteer Service Award to recognize dedicated volunteers and show gratitude for their efforts. You can recognize your volunteers for their hard work and commitment by nominating them for this honor through the Fire Corps national office.
To be eligible to receive the award, individuals, families, and groups must submit a record of their annual or lifetime volunteer service hours to participating certifying organizations, such as Fire Corps. Fire Corps will verify the service described and deliver the award. Eligibility for individuals and groups is based upon the number of volunteer hours served. Requirements are available at
www.presidentialserviceawards.gov.
To nominate a Fire Corps program or a volunteer for the President’s Volunteer Service Award, send an email to
info@firecorps.org that includes the person’s contact information, a detailed description of his or her service, and the number of hours volunteered. The awardee will also be profiled on the Fire Corps web site or in the Fire Corps E-update. To learn more about the President’s Volunteer Service Award, visit
www.presidentialserviceawards.gov.
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Fire Corps National Preparedness Month Update - Americans with Disabilities
July 26 marks the 17th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which was signed into law in 1990 to guarantee equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities. To recognize the needs of this important part of the population, Fire Corps has added a section to its Fire Corps National Preparedness Month Resource Center to provide Fire Corps teams with information regarding emergency preparedness for those with disabilities.
People with disabilities are often at greater risk during an emergency situation, but Fire Corps programs can play an important role in assisting these individuals in preparing for emergencies. These include creating disaster supply kits, gathering data on individuals to help emergency responders locate individuals with disabilities, installing smoke alarms for the hearing-impaired, and spreading awareness.
Fire Corps would also like to encourage people with disabilities to volunteer with their local Fire Corps program. As a volunteer, these individuals can assist the Fire Corps program and fire/EMS department in gaining a better understanding of the specific needs of those with disabilities in times of crises. These individuals can perform an unlimited number of Fire Corps tasks, such as fire prevention education, fundraising, event planning, and more.
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Fire Corps Members Take First Place at National Leadership Conference
Students from the University of the Ozarks’ Phi Beta Lambda (PBL) organization in Clarksville, Arkansas, recently won first place in the Community Service competitive event at the PBL National Leadership Conference (NLC) in Chicago, Illinois. These students make up the Fire Corps team for Johnson County Rural Fire District (RFD) #1. Their Fire Corps project was selected from a field of 25 competing universities and colleges from across the United States.
Senior marketing major and RFD #1 Fire Corps Director, Kari Wood, led the Fire Corps effort to a first place finish in the PBL Community Service competition. The competition consisted of both a written report and a presentation highlighting the group’s success in the execution of the Kidsfest Safety Fair, an event in which the members assisted with various activities including the Fire Safety Parade, an obstacle course, a fire safety house, and a Kidprint ID booth. The Fire Corps members spent over 220 hours volunteering for this event, with the goal to share fire safety messages with children and their families. The safety fair organizers reported a turnout of 1,500 children and their caregivers, which was double the previous year’s attendance.
In addition to the Kidsfest Safety Fair, Fire Corps members assist Johnson County RFD #1 firefighters with a variety of activities, including conducting fire safety education in the county, state, and nation. Since the group’s launch in spring of 2005, Fire Corps members from the university have donated over 5,000 hours and participated in over 350 hours of fire safety education training annually, while simultaneously earning community service credit through the college for their participation in the program. Together with the department’s firefighters, the group has effected a 34 percent decrease in residential property loss for the department’s district.
University of the Ozark’s Fire Corps members are working with the Fire Corps national office to promote Fire Corps as a national PBL community service project to 15,000 PBL Chapters across the nation. To create awareness for the program, Fire Corps staff exhibited and hosted a workshop at the NLC, reaching out to colleges and universities to inform the students and their advisors of the benefits of joining a Fire Corps program.
PBL is a national education association of students preparing for careers in business and business-related fields. Its mission is to bring business and education together in a positive working relationship through innovative leadership, career development, and community service programs. For more information, visit
www.fbla-pbl.org. For more information on the Johnson County RFD #1 Fire Corps program, visit
www.rfd1.com or contact Dayna Hilton at
daynark@gmail.com.
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Share Information on the Fire Corps Connection Listserv
Fire Corps program coordinators, community volunteers, fire and emergency service representatives, and Citizen Corps Council members are invited to join the Fire Corps Connection listserv, a valuable network for receiving and sharing information about Fire Corps programs across the nation.
This listserv enables members to share ideas and experiences, ask questions, discuss challenges and highlight best practices and lessons learned regarding the Fire Corps programs. In addition, the listserv is an important marketing tool for publicizing upcoming or ongoing Fire Corps activities or to share success stories and innovative practices. Ask your questions about issues such as funding, retention and recruitment, or Fire Corps resources to fellow FC Connection members. Distributing information and posting inquiries on the FC Connection listserv offers insights from various perspectives, including the Fire Corps national office, Fire Corps programs across the nation, and other associated organizations.
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Department Profile: Fire Corps of Utah
The Fire Corps of Utah is taking steps to solve an all too common problem - a large number of fire departments would like to have a Fire Corps program, but many do not have the resources to manage one alone. As a result, the state of Utah is taking the lead by creating a state-wide Fire Corp program that is managed by the Utah Office of the State Fire Marshal. Each region will have representatives to direct volunteers in their area to a department with needs that match the volunteers’ interests and abilities. Through this program, the Fire Corps of Utah will rise to the challenge of serving 2.5 million people spread over 84,000 square miles.
This unique method of organization will allow departments across the state to benefit from volunteer support. Fire Corps members can work to increase participation in their community’s local Fire Corps program, or they can focus on state-wide initiatives, such as being a regional coordinator for the Juvenile Firesetter Intervention Program or creating fire safety education materials for use in schools.
One of the main activities of the Fire Corps members is to increase wildland urban interface (WUI) safety through education. Utah has many isolated communities throughout the state that are completely surrounded by wildland. Wildfires occur every summer and often threaten both rural and urban communities. Reaching the citizens about this particular danger is crucial, and the threat is even greater this year as the current number of wildfires already exceeds 46,000 – well over the national average of 43,273.
To help with WUI education, Fire Corps of Utah has partnered with other stakeholder organizations such as Community Fire Councils comprised of landowners living in identified WUI areas who have come together to create fire plans and take action. These councils identify the hazard their community faces in regard to wildfires, prioritize the hazards, and establish an action plan. The councils are encouraged to form a Fire Corps group under Fire Corps of Utah. If and when their local fire department is ready to support the council, Fire Corps of Utah relinquishes organizational control and the councils report directly to the local departments instead.
In addition, volunteers for the magazine Utah Living with Fire are working with Fire Corps of Utah to update the educational materials the state distributes to those concerned about wildfire. A Citizen Corps grant was used to hire a photographer to get Utah-specific photos both for this publication and to provide stock images for future needs. If additional funding can be secured, they plan to produce an educational video for Community Fire Councils and other Fire Corps educators to use.
Recently, Fire Corps of Utah, along with Utah Living with Fire and Forestry, Fire, and State Lands, hosted a WUI workshop for homeowners in Cedar City and will also host a second workshop in Salt Lake City in August. Over the next year, they hope to host four to six smaller workshops in communities across the state to further educate the public on how to prevent damage from wildfires.
Another project for Fire Corps of Utah is a WUI homeowner training program for urban neighborhoods. Currently, Utah has an award-winning training program for rural WUI communities to help them understand their hazards, take personal responsibility for their safety and protection of their property, and teach them appropriate actions. Fire Corps members are working with the creators of this program and with the local structural fire agency to produce an urban-based version of the training. The project is scheduled to be piloted this fall and spring.
For more information about the Fire Corps of Utah, contact Monica Colby at
monicacolby@utah.gov.
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Calendar of Events
Below is a list of events, conferences, conventions, and shows that Fire Corps staff will be attending, as well as nationally recognized dates which Fire Corps would like to acknowledge.
Louisiana State Firemen’s Association 102nd Annual Conference
August 9-11
Lafayette, LA
Fire-Rescue International
August 23-25
Atlanta, GA
National Preparedness Month
September
Fire Prevention Week
October 7-13
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